There are many known types of welding systems used for many different welding processes. Welding system, or system for welding, as used herein, includes one or more of a power source, controller, wire feeder, and a source of gas, it may also include peripherals such as robots, etc. Welding power supply, as used herein, includes any device capable of supplying welding power including power circuitry, control circuitry and other ancillary circuitry associated therewith.
Some welding power supplies are dedicated for use in semi-automatic (hand held welding), and others for automated (with a robot) welding. The connections and controls are specifically designed for either hand held or robotic welding. The Miller Axcess™ welding system is an example of a sophisticated system designed for robotic welding.
Some customers use more than one type of robot. One prior art robotic welding system, described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,627,849 which is hereby incorporated by reference, uses pin connections on a cord to determine the type of robot to which it is connected. After determining the type of robot, the system then is able to properly interpret the commands from that particular robot.
Also, some customers use both robotic and hand held welding systems. Customers who use robotic and hand held welding systems sequentially could benefit by having a single power supply that is used with the robot and the gun. Customers that simultaneously use multiple welding systems, including robotic and hand held, could benefit by having a single back-up power supply for both robot and hand haled systems.
Accordingly, a welding system that can be used as part of an automated system or as part of a non-automated or semi-automatic system is desirable. Preferably, such as system will not require the user to reconfigure the system and will automatically determine if it is connected to a robot or a gun.